A Date and A New Pair of Shoes
by manda.marie20
Summary: Kurt sees Rachel on Blaine's birthday years after graduating NYADA together. He promises two things.
1. Chapter 1

Kurt tapped his foot rapidly against the floor of Publix, growing impatient. He had been standing in line for close to 10 minutes now, moving only to let a little boy get to the candy case next to Kurt.

"This is ridiculous." he huffed. Looking down at his watch for the fifth time, he turned around and headed toward another line. _Too long, too long, too long_ he thought as he passed all of the lines to different lanes. He finally jumped in one that had a good three or four people ahead of him, so he had no choice but to wait.

After he reached the conveyer belt, he slammed his items onto it and reached into his pocket to get his wallet. "Kurt? Kurt Hummel?" asked an all too familiar voice. Kurt's head snapped up and his eyes met those of the cashier. The voice belonged to _Rachel Berry_.

Obviously Kurt wasn't the only one who's dreams hadn't exactly worked out.

Stunned, he couldn't even form the proper words to respond. It had been _years_ since he had last seen her. NYADA. That was where they had said their last goodbyes. Rachel was off to start her career on Broadway in a new musical about some boy who was struck by lightning in high school. And Kurt was going to begin his own fashion line, which did work out well until it plummeted into the ground due to the economy.

"Rach!" Kurt finally exclaimed. "What are you doing here, back in Lima?" he asked, a smile now stretched across his face.

"I decided to move back here after that play I was in crashed horribly." she explained, scanning each of Kurt's items slowly so they could talk. "What about you? Run out of different ways to include a hippo broach in everyday fashion?" she teased. They shared a laugh.

"Ohh, no. Actually I moved back here to be with dad while he undergoes his treatment for his Prostate cancer. He's still fighting it like a champ." Kurt replied with a saddened expression. "But I _am_ working on something new…" he said with a newfound happiness. "Shoe designing."

"Kurt, that's great!" Rachel responded with a smile. "So…" she started, "Where's Finn been lately? I haven't heard from him in… a couple of years, actually."

Kurt debated on telling Rachel, considering how big of a blow-out Rachel and Finn had been a few years back, but she was an old friend. It's the least he could do. "He's back in Lima right now to see dad and Carol."

"Really? Wow…" she answered. "I bet he's changed a lot..." Rachel whispered to herself. "Oh, and that'll be $32.50, sir." She smiled at a man wearing a black suit walking by, probably her manager.

"Maybe… Maybe I could talk him into taking you out. And you know, talking about the past few years." he told her, handing over his debit card. "Hey, um, actually tonight my family and I are celebrating Blaine's birthday. The big 20! Would you like to come over? See everyone again?"

Rachel stopped typing something into the register and looked up at Kurt. "I would love to." she smiled.

"Seven, then?" Kurt confirmed with Rachel before gathering his plastic bags off the counter.

"Sounds great! Oh, and you have to promise me you'll give me a demo of a new shoe design you're trying out!" She stared into his eyes as she explained, "I want to be wearing the _first_ pair of Kurt Hummel heels." She laughed. Rachel waved goodbye as Kurt walked out and stuck up his pinky as a promise.

Later that night at Kurt's house, he frantically opened the oven and pulled out a beautiful Dalton cake, then proceeding to shove the second batch of lasagna in to bake. His hair was a mess, pieces falling into his face. He was covered in flour and sauce, and it seemed to him that this hectic night would never end. Blaine waltzed into the kitchen, solely pausing to grab a chip, swipe some salsa off Kurt's shirt onto it, and dart out of sight.

"Very funny, Blaine. I'm laughing hysterically on the inside." Kurt yelled out in a monotone voice. Blaine's laugh resounded from the den, and suddenly Blaine was back in the kitchen with his arms wrapped around Kurt's waist.

"You know you love me." Blaine whispered in Kurt's ear, feeling Kurt tremble under Blaine's touch. Kurt laughed at his own reflexes, and he then kissed Blaine long and hard. Their lips melted together perfectly. Kurt really did love Blaine, more than any other person in the world.

"Now, shoo, shoo!" Kurt exclaimed, waving his hands back and forth in Blaine's direction. "I don't want you eating anything that I've made yet, garbage gut." Blaine started toward the doorway, giving Kurt's butt a nice firm slap before turning around with a sexy smirk.

Kurt loved Blaine. Kurt loved Blaine very, very much. And hopefully Blaine would realize just _how _much after tonight.

All of Kurt's family arrived in no time, and finally everyone was seated at the dinner table. With the rolls being passed around and the wine being poured (for some), Kurt stood with a glass in hand. "I would like to just say happy birthday to the love of my life. From the moment we met on those stairs at Dalton, I knew you were the right man for me. Especially since you looked _so_ damn nice in that blazer." Everyone laughed. "And also that I'm _overjoyed _at the fact that everyone is here. Dad, Carol, even Fi-!"

_Knock, knock_. The sound came from the front door. "I'll get it." Burt said, about to push himself out of his chair.

"No, no, Burt I got it." Blaine exclaimed, his words almost invisibly pushing Burt back down into his seat limply. Blaine walked through the den over to the door and looked through the peep hole. "_Is that…?_" he asked himself out loud. Blaine opened the door to find none other than Rachel. "Rachel Berry? Oh my God!" He yelled out and a smile spread across his face.

"Happy birthday!" Rachel laughed as she raised a box wrapped complete with a bowtie.

They talked in the den for a minute, and then Blaine yelled out, "Hey, Kurt! There's a girl at the door saying that you owe her a date and a new pair of shoes!"

Oh, _shit_. Finn was here. Rachel was here. Finn _heard that_. And just as he suspected, when Kurt turned to look at Finn, Finn's dagger eyes were glued on _him_. Kurt knew the night was now set for disaster, and no pair of designer heels could fix it.


	2. Chapter 2

Rachel trailed close behind Blaine into the dining room. She looked around at everyone, smiling widely- until she met eyes with Finn. Her smile dropped a little, but she quickly regained herself, clearing her throat. Kurt couldn't help but stare down at his plate the whole time.

"Please, take a seat, Rach." Blaine offered as he pulled up a rolling computer chair from the den. Rachel laughed and accepted his suggestion of a glass of wine.

"So, how are things around here at the Hummel house?" Rachel inquired. Kurt pushed around the perfect square of lasagna still left on his plate. He didn't look up since Rachel walked in.

Burt was explaining how his business was going well. He told her that he was still fighting his cancer, while Carol was doing her best to help out. Finn gave Kurt darting looks every once in a while, usually whenever Rachel's laugh resounded through the room.

"So, Kurt." Rachel said finally. Kurt's head snapped up and he smiled nervously.

"Yes, Rachel?" Kurt answered in a hushed voice. He tried not to think about the heavy stare he was receiving from beside him.

"When am I going to see those heels I specifically claimed?" she laughed.

Kurt let go of all the air he was holding in his lungs, breathing normally now. He laughed to himself before saying, "Oh, believe me, you'll get them by the end of dinner. I swear it."

Really, he was just happy she didn't mention again the other half of the promise he made.

The whole family talked with Rachel, laughing at old stories and memories they had. So much had changed for everyone in the past few years. Finn didn't say much, but Kurt was being eaten up inside by all the unspoken words between them.

He knew he was in for it after dinner.

"Excuse me." Kurt whispered as he stood up quickly from his chair. He hastily walked into the guest bathroom right around the corner and locked the door. He looked at himself in the mirror, breathing in and out slowly.

"Kurt, you have to fix this mess." he told himself. He splashed a little cold water on his face, and just as he went to grab a towel, there was a knock on the door. "Who is it?" Kurt inquired.

"It's just me." Blaine's voice rang out from the other side of the door.

Kurt quickly unlocked the door to let Blaine come in, then sat down on the counter. Blaine closed the door behind him, and looked at Kurt with his, "I love you, but what's going on?" eyes.

"You know how I told you about meeting Rachel earlier today at Publix?" Kurt asked. "Well, now that it's been announced that I owe her a date, Finn has a hunch that it's him."

"And?" Blaine shrugged his shoulders, as if he was expecting something more threatening. He knew Kurt had grown emotionally stronger in the past few years, and that not much phased him.

"And..." Kurt started, "His hunch is dead on."

Blaine seemed taken aback by the statement, but he put that emotion away quickly, replacing it with a smile. "Baby, don't worry. Everything will work out just fine. Maybe Finn will just forget about it." he said.

Kurt swallowed back the tears that were forming and impairing in his vision. "But what if I _really_ screwed up this time?" Kurt choked. "Finn barely comes around anymore because he knows Lima holds a lot of heavy memories. Ones of Rachel and all the pain their relationship brought him."

"Kurt, do you remember what I always told you in high school?" Blaine asked. "When you were being bullied by Krofsky, and practically everyone else at McKinley?" Kurt nodded. "Well, what was it?"

Kurt smiled and spoke softly, remembering the moment Blaine told him. "Courage. For me to have courage every day. To remember that things would get better, and to do what I had to do to get through things."

"Right." Blaine smiled back at Kurt, the man he loved. "So, what are you going to do?" he asked.

"I'll… Just tell Rachel that the date won't happen. And that she'll get her shoes instead." Kurt laughed.

Blaine got closer to Kurt, and ran his hand across Kurt's cheek. "I love you." Blaine whispered. He kissed Kurt softly, their lips barely touching. Kurt's hands slid down to Blaine's waist, wrapping tightly around him, pulling their bodies closer together. Their lips moved in sync, along with breathing that could only be described as ragged. Kurt moved to position his body right up against Blaine, causing Blaine to release a small moan.

"Shhhh." Kurt whispered to Blaine. "Just wait for tonight." he said, trailing a finger down Blaine's stomach. Blaine laughed to himself, realizing that there _were _still people just a few feet away.

"Okay, okay. I guess we should get back to our guests before they thing we're doing something." Blaine said with a wink. He quickly fixed his shirt to lie back down without any crinkles as Kurt ran his hand through his hair, causing it to look normal again.

Walking over to the door, Blaine turned to Kurt and stated, "After you, my love. And remember what we discussed, okay?"

"Got it. Just tell her the truth about how my brother would rather skin a cat before going on a date with her again. Easy-peesy." Kurt sarcastically remarked. "Thank you." Kurt said before stepping out of the bathroom, slapping Blaine's butt as he passed by.

As soon as Kurt got into the dining room, he spotted Rachel sitting in the same spot as she was. She was on her phone, laughing at something on Twitter. He took in a deep breath, knowing what he was about to have to tell Rachel. "_You can do this_." whispered a voice inside his mind that belonged to the man he loved.

"Rachel, would you take a walk with me?"


End file.
